Sewing-machine lap-seam feller.



PATENTED AUG. 6, 1907.

v A. H.- DB VOE. v SEWING MACHINE LAP S'BAM FELLER.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 21, 1905- Q 2 SHEETS-SHEHT 1.

I I X w, 5 5 f 7 5 WHH 0 N/y a It fllsnomzls PErzRs cm. WASHINGTON, 2, c4

No. 862,141. PATENTED AUG. 6, 1907;

v I A. H. DB VOE. SEWING MACHINE LAP SEAM FELLER.

APPLIGATIOI FILED DEC. 21, 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

THE NORRIS Pn'sRs ca WASHINGTON, n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT 11. DE VOE, OF ELIZABETH, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SEWING-MACHINE LAP-SEAM FELLER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 6, 1907.

Application filed December 21, 1905. Serial No. 292,687.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT H. Dn Von, a citizen of the United States, residing at Elizabeth, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machine Lap-Seam Fellers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying; drawings.

This invention relates to an improvement in that class of sewing machine attachments adapted to produce lap-seam folds upon various classes of garments and adapted for use especially in connection with the stitching of shirt bosoms to the bodies of shirts.

The invention has for its object to enable the attachment to readily ride over cross-seams, to maintain a uniform pressure with the different portions of the garment to be united and to maintain the edge-guiding members in operative relation with the work under all conditions in which it is used.

To this end, the invention in its preferred form consists in a resser-foot shank provided with independently-movable pivoted and vertically-yielding footportions, to the latter of which is connected the folding guide by means of' a rigid shank having an operative edge-guiding face extending from the folding guide and beyond the forward end of its respective foot-portion and offset slightly below the same, whereby the two foot-portions are enabled to maintain independently their contact relation with the different thicknesses of goods to be united, the folding guide maintains its parallelism with the face of the material to insure the reception and turning of the edge of the goods under n ormal conditions at all times, and the edge of the fold is controlled up to the stitching position to secure a uniform spacing of the adjacent line of stitching with the edge of the fold in the finished garment.

The invention will be understood by reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a perspective view representing the attachment applied to the presser-bar of the sewing machine and after the operation of stitching the bosom to the front or body of the shirt. Fig. 2 is a plan and Fig. 3 an elevation, partly in section, of the same with the garment removed. Fig. 4 is an elevation of the opposite side of the attachment from that represented in Fig. 3, and Fig. 5 a bottom view of the same. Figs. 6 and 7 are perspective views, respectively, of the shank-portion of the presser-foot and the hinged foot-piece.

As represented in the drawings, 1 is the bed-plate of a sewing machine and 2 the depending portion of the bracket-arm carrying the needle-bar 3 with thin-needles 4 and the presser-bar 5 to the reduced lower end of which is secured by means of the fastening screw 6 the upper end of the shank-portion 7 of the presser-foot having at its lower end the depending longitudinally-disposed tongue 8 towhich is fitted the similarly-channeled foot-piece 9 pivotally connected therewith by means of a pin 10 and provided also with a longitudinal slot 11 adapted to receive the vertically-yielding footpiece 12 having the guide-pin 13 journaled in the hollow post 14 provided upon the shank-portion 7 and carrying a stop-collar 15 secured at its upper end by means of a pin 16. To the forward end of the foot-piece 12 is connected the lap-seam folding guide 17 by means of a shank 18 rigidly connected at opposite ends to such parts and provided with a lateral edge-guiding face 19 extending from the delivery end of the folding guide to and beyond the front end of the yielding foot-portion 12 and the needle-holes 20 of the pivoted foot-piece 9 and having its lower edge offset slightly below the operative face of the foot-portion 12, as indicated particularly in Fig. 4. The pivoted foot-piece 9 is yieldingly maintained tilted slightly upward by means of a spring 21 interposed between such part and the inner end of a socket therefor in the shank-portion 7, While the foot-piece 12 is pressed bodily downward by means of a spring 22 interposed between the same and the inner end of a suitable socket therefor in the bottom of the shank-portion 7.

In the use of the attachment in connection with the stitching of bosoms into shirt bodies, as represented in Fig. 1, thecut-out edge of the shirt body a is introduced into the lower left-hand scroll and the overlapped edges of the plies composing the shirt-bosom b are similarly introduced into the right-hand upper scroll, after which the presser-foot is lowered to clamp the material upon the work-plate and the machine set in operation. It will be observed that both of the foot-pieces 9 and 12 adjust themselves independently to the thickness of the material, the former receiving practically the entire stress of the usual presser-bar spring, while the latter is pressed lightly upon the thinner or body-portion of the work by means of the spring 22, whereby both portions of the material are maintained smooth to insure the proper passage of the goods through the attachment. When the attachment reaches the previously formed center plait at b, the foot-piece 9 is materially raised and tilted, by reason of the double thickness of material which it crosses, while the foot-piece 1.2 is maintained in normal relation upon the body a by means of its spring 22, and the relative position of the folder 17 to the work is thus maintained. When the bosom reinforcement c is reached, the condition of the foot-piece 9 remains normal but the foot-piece 12 rises bodily under the action of the added thickness of material, while the folder 17 still maintains its normal relation to the work without the tilting action which would result from a pivotal connection of the foot-piece 12 with the shank 7 similar to that of the foot-piece 9. It will thus be seen.

tionally as an edge-guide extending from one to the other, while the offset in its lower edge slightly below the bottom of the foot-portion 12 insures the guidance of the folded edge of the fabric from the folder to a point slightly beyond the stitching point, whereby the edge is so confined intermediate the folding and stitching operations as to cause the uniform positioning of the stitches in relation to the edge of the folder.

One of the several advantages which is derived from arranging the folder Wholly in advance of the two relatively-yielding presser members is that the folding member may be provided with the laterally extending supporting plate 17 herein represented as extending to the right of the stitching line beneath the edge-turning or scroll portions of the folder, so that the under as well as the upper ply of the material to be united by a lapseam is supported from the common member 18, whereby the raising and lowering of the resser-foot is not permitted to disturb the interlocked relation of the marginal portions of the material. The extension of this supporting plate in advance of the mouth of the folder affords a rest for the marginally overlapped pieces of material enabling the operator to introduce the same into the attachment in the proper relation and to maintain such relation thereon by pressure of the fingers upon the material about to enter the folder without disarrangemcnt when lowering the presser-foot.

Having thus set forth the nature of my invention, what I claim herein is,

1 The combination with a sewing machine presser'foot comprising a shank portion and two relatively-movable members. both having operative work-engaging lower faces one of which is bodily yielding vertically in respect of said shank portion, of an arm rigidly attached to and carried bodily by said vertically yielding member and ex tending in advance thereof, and a folder attached to said arm and disposed wholly in advance of said vertically yielding presser-foot member.

2. The combination with a sewing machine presser-oot comprising a shank-portion and two relatively-movable operative members one of which is pivoted to said shank portion and the other of which is bodily yielding vertically in respect of the shankportion, of a folder rigidly attached to said vertically-yielding member, and adapted to yield bodily therewith while maintaining substantial-parallelism in all operative positions.

3. The combination with a sewing machine pressenfoot comp sing a shank-portion and two relatively-movable operative members one of which is bodily yielding vertically in respect of said shank-portion, of a folder and a shank therefor rigidly connected with said vertically yielding member, said shank being provided with a guiding fa'ce extending from the delivery end of said folder beyond the forward end of said presser-foot.

4. The combination with a sewing machine 'pressenfoot comprising a shank-portion and two relatively-movable members, both having operative worleengaging lower faces one of which is bodily yielding vertically in respect of said shank-portion, of a folder and a shank therefor rigidly connected with said vertically yielding member and provided with a guiding face extending from the delivery end of said folder beyond the forward end of said presser-ioot, said shank being offset slightly below the operative face of said yielding member.

The combination with a sewing machine presser-ioot comprising a shank-portion and two relatively-movable operative members one of which is pivoted to said shankportion and the other of which is bodily yielding vertically in respect of the shank-portion, of a folder rigidly attached to said vertically-yielding member, and a spring interposed between the presser-foot shank-portion and said vertically-yielding member for pressing the latter upon the work independently of the pivoted member.

6. The combination with a sewing machine presser-i'oot comprising a shank-portion and two relatively-movable pressure members, both having operative work-engaging lower faces, one of which members is bodily yielding vertically in respect of said shank-portion, of a folder dis posed wholly in advance of the operative worloengaging lower faces of said presser-foot members, and a rigid shank connection intermediate said folder and the yielding presser-foot member and provided with a guiding face extending from the delivery end of said folder beyond the forward end of said presser-foot.

" The combination with a sewing machine presser-foot ii comprising a shank portion and two relatively movable members one 01 which is bodily yielding vertically in respect of said shank portion. of an arm rigidly attached to and carried bodily by said vertically yielding member and extending in advance of the same, and a lap-seam folder attached to said arm and disposed wholly in advance of said presser member and provided with a laterally extending supporting plate for the lower ply of material.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of: two subscribing witnesses.

ALBERT Hi DE VOE.

Witnesses HENRY .l. Mrnnna, HENRY A. KONEMANN. 

